Singapore
launches first donor breast milk bank
SINGAPORE: For 35-year-old Madam Nor Adliyah Haryanie, the birth
of her baby boy in July via an emergency caesarian-section came as
a shock, since she had previously had three normal-term babies. But
what was even more stressful was that her son was born prematurely
at 30 weeks, weighing just 800 grams.
Worst of all, her body was just not producing enough breast
milk.
“I kept asking myself what was wrong with me that I could not pump
enough milk for my child,” Mdm Haryanie said.
“Imagine looking at the bottle and there’s nothing when you pump.
And when you’re at the hospital pumping beside other mothers and
they have so much milk supply. I kept comparing and was upset and
kept thinking I was not a good mum.”
Her son is currently on formula milk for pre-term babies, but that
could change within the month, with the launch of a three-year
pilot for Singapore’s first donor breast milk bank.
The programme, a collaboration between KK Women’s and Children’s
Hospital (KKH) and Temasek Foundation Cares, was launched by former
Speaker of Parliament and presidential hopeful, Halimah Yacob on
Thursday (Aug 17). Also present at the event was another
presidential hopeful Mr Mohamed Salleh Marican. Mr Salleh is a
Temasek Cares board member.
The milk bank will provide breast milk for premature and sick
neonates from donor mothers. In a joint media release, KKH and
Temasek Foundation Cares said they hope to recruit 375 mothers who
are willing to donate their excess breast milk supply. The
foundation has set aside S$1.37 million for the milk bank, which
will collect, screen, process and store breast milk from donor
mothers.
BREAST MILK ESPECIALLY CRITICAL FOR PRE-TERM
BABIES
According to guidelines by the World Health Organisation, babies
should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months, as it is
a vital source of nutrition and antibodies.
“For premature babies, they have very premature immune and
digestive systems,” said KKH’s head of neonatology, Dr Chua Mei
Chien.
“For these premature babies, exposure to cow’s milk can expose them
to a lot of problems including feeding intolerance and the
potential development of a condition known as Necrotising
Enterocolitis (NEC).”
This is a potentially lethal disease in which the intestines of
infants can become damaged due to tissue death. Dr Chua said the
fatality rate in infants afflicted with the disease can be between
30 and 50 per cent.
Some 350 "very low birth weight” infants receive neonatal
intensive care in local public Hospitals, and for many mothers of
pre-term babies, it takes them a period of days or weeks before
their bodies are able to produce enough milk. In fact, KKH said up
to 80 per cent of sick infants in the neonatal intensive care unit
and the special care nursery have to drink formula milk for
premature babies because their mothers are unable to produce enough
milk.
"The provision of safe, pasteurised donor breast milk is aimed at
reducing the risk of potential complications, while optimising
their immunity, development and overall health," a joint statement
by KKH and TCF read.
DONATED MILK SUBJECTED TO STRINGENT
SCREENING
Dr Chua, who is also director of the milk bank programme said
unlike donated milk from informal milk sharing groups, milk from
donor mums is undergoes various “stringent” screening
processes.
For example, donor mums will be tested for diseases such as HIV,
hepatitis B and C and syphilis. Once they pass the test, donor mums
will be given bags and ice packs with which to store the milk. They
will also be provided information on how to store the breast
milk.
When the milk is brought in, it will go through a thawing and
testing process. A batch of the donated milk will be tested for
bacterial contamination. Once tests come back normal, the donated
milk will be pasteurised and sent once more for a microbiology
test. It is then stored in a freezer until it is dispensed.
At no point is donated milk from different sources mixed
together into one batch, although the infant may receive milk from
different donors during each feed.
Dr Chua said about 20 mothers have so far indicated their interest
to donate their breast milk. To be eligible to donate, donor
mothers would not only have to undergo screening, but also ensure
they are exclusively breastfeeding babies who are less than one
year of age.
SOME 900 BABIES EXPECTED TO BENEFIT
Dr Chua said that for the first year, the milk bank will supply
donated milk to pre-term infants admitted to KKH. That’s because
while the rate of premature births in Singapore is about 9 per
cent, KKH sees up to 13.5 per cent of pre term infants.
Pre-term infants admitted to the Singapore General Hospital (SGH)
and the National University Hospital will also benefit from donated
milk in the second and third year of the pilot programme.
Altogether, some 900 pre term babies are expected to benefit from
the programme.
To qualify for the donated milk, pre-term infants have to be born
at less than 32 weeks of gestation and weigh 1.8kg or less at
birth.
Speaking at the launch, Mdm Halimah, who was a founding board
member of Temasek Cares urged all able mothers to come forward and
donate their excess breast milk. The mother of five also reassured
Muslim mothers that their pre-term babies can indeed receive milk
from the milk bank.
“The Fatwa Committee of MUIS has issued a fatwa that using donor
milk from the milk bank for the purposes of preserving the
well-being of the infant does not establish kinship,” Mdm Halimah
said.
“Muslims, therefore, are also encouraged to contribute to the milk
bank.”
For Mdm Haryanie, the reassurance also goes a long way. "As a
Muslim woman, that was my concern because if I said yes (to donated
milk), other people may ask, 'hey how come as a Muslim, you don’t
mind'? So when they (MUIS) said it’s okay, I felt reassured going
ahead with the programme."
With the launch, Singapore joins about 40 countries to operate
official milk banks. Channel NewsAsia understands the milk bank
will start dispensing donated milk within the month.
Source: CNA/cy